MUMBAI: Long before sociology became a popular subject in Indian universities, the University of Mumbai had already begun building a space for the study of society. Established in 1919, the university’s department of sociology is the oldest centre of teaching and research in sociology and anthropology in India. It was also the first post-graduate teaching department of sociology in India and the second of its kind in South Asia.
More than a century later, the department is preparing to open a new chapter by initiating a pilot project to digitise its records. Titled ‘Survey and Digitisation of the Legacy of the Discipline of Sociology in India: Records of the University of Mumbai’, the project will start by surveying, cataloguing and digitising teaching 3,000 pages of documents linked to the setting up of the department.
The 12-month pilot project is led by department head professor Manisha Rao and with a £15,000 grant under the British Library’s Endangered Archives Programme, with support from Arcadia.
The 3,000 sample pages cover minutes, letters, reports and confidential proceedings, including letters written by Sir Patrick Geddes, noted Scottish sociologist, town planner and thinker who set up the department and became its first professor. Other leaders, academics and thinkers whose letters will be digitised are Dalit leader and architect of the Indian Constitution, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar, Iravati Karwe and other noted sociologists.
Geddes headed the department from 1919 to 1924. Using an interdisciplinary approach, he linked sociology with town planning, geography and biology. He also underlined the importance of field work and practical learning.
GS Ghurye succeeded Geddes and led the department for more than three decades. The department’s academic tradition helped train several leading sociologists and researchers, including MN Srinivas, Irawati Karve, IP Desai and MSA Rao.
“These records can help us understand how the discipline developed, how it was taught and how academic institutions changed over time. The grant gives us an opportunity to preserve this material and make it useful for future researchers,” said Rao.
The British Library’s Endangered Archives Programme supports the digitisation of archival collections that face risks from neglect, deterioration or destruction.
